I just did my cam install 2 nights ago. It wasn't bad, started at 5pm, stopped at 3am, not constant work and atleast an hour of it was searching for those DAMN keepers for the valves that fly off, we finally started holding them down when we compressed the spring. Anyway, just follow ls1howto, it's really not bad, my only complaint was we didn't use those covers you put on the fenders etc when you lean over and now my freshly painted front end has all these scuffs on it from people leaning over on it all night, it'll all buff out but it pisses me off.

To hold up the lifters, go to wal-mart or something and buy 5/16" wooden dowel rods from the arts & crafts section, right next to the sewing/fabric. Trust me, that is the easiest and cheapest way to do it. I bought some metal dowel rods from home depot first and couldnt get the damn things in, and rather than spending an hour or so trying to use a dremel to grind down the edges on the 2 rods(i dont have a grinder), I tried the wooden dowels. They are made perfectly for this, it won't splinter or crack, just lube it up and work it in, super fast and easy, and you can feel them hit the back of the block. Plus they have some give to them so you can sort of work them in at an angle to start off with since you don't have much room. Worked famously.

I recommend the Crane valve spring tool, super fast doing 2 at a time but the other tool you can look at for $30 is Tim's Tool:
https://ls1tech.com/forums/tools-fabrication/317675-tim-s-valve-spring-tool-now-available.html
Heard nothing but good things about it. I used the TDC method cause it was free and I don't have a air compressor handy and didn't feel like hauling a friends to my garage. Plus it helps to be able to push the valve in slightly so that the keepers go into place while you work on the 2nd valve(crane tool you do 2 at a time). We used a buddys cordless impacts and they made things SO much easier.

For the crank pulley bolt we put it in 4th gear and I have a 3/4" drive set of tools so we used I think a 15/16" socket and a 3/4" drive breaker bar and i slipped a long piece of fence post over that and worked it around the hood, 2 turns with that and finished loosening it with a 3/4" drive ratchet. Super easy.

We took so long mainly cause we had a bunch of friends coming by to check it out, lend a hand, and have a few beers. It was me(im 19) and a friend(16) that did all the work. Initial start up makes it all worth it man, that loud *** lope @ 3am, my neighbors loved it .

 

Patience, and use dowels to hold up the lifters NOT magnets. Not a hard task, just tedious

 

I've done cam installs on other cars (SBC, SBF) and heads/cam on my 355ci olds cutlass. I'll be doing a H/C swap on my formula this winter and I'm sure doing heads on an F-body is gonna be somewhat more of a challenge because half the motor is covered...I guess we'll see...

 

You can do it man. Nothing to it, just do your homework, read all the writeups, make sure you've got all the parts and tools you'll need and an extra helper. Take your time, follow the steps, stay organized with parts you remove, and you'll be fine. Only special tool needed aside from hand tools is a pulley puller availabe at most any Autozone or whatever.

 

I'll rent out the tools. The real rods, crane dual spring tool and air fitting for the cylinder. That flat side on the rods has a purpose. Just an option to buying all the stuff or having to use a homeade remedy.

 

Im 17 and did my own cam install last week and I thought it was very simple task. i did it by myself and i also rented the tools from the guy above which made it even easier

 

Heads and cam. Did same and other stuff when I was a kid - sbc.

 

read up on ls1howto.com, I am planning on doing my own soon.

 

Definately, take your time and make sure its right, your not curing cancer here...your just throwing a new bump stick in there...are you going to degree it or just line up the dots?

 

yep me too

 

Just finished up a cam swap, and it was completely easy. Only difficulty was the springs. I would HIGHLY recommend spending the money on the Crane tool, I will certainly be buying it for my next cam swap.

 

yep thats a good estimate, it has taken me a long time but I am taking extra time to not mess things up.
the crank pulley is fun, I had to put mine in the oven for 20 before I tried to put it on. If you rush it will fight you

 

OR just rent it from me. I added a pushrod length checker to the package.

 

Use you digital camera to take a picture of the engine before you begin the tear down. This comes in handy when it comes time to get all the hoses and cables back in the proper place. The compressed air helps, but #8 is a bitch getting the adapter on. Might want to forgo the air on #8 and just use TDC. On the ones you do use the air keep the pressure LOW. Too much air will spin the crank.

 

I have done a cam swap in 3:15 hr from start to finish.

Its really not that bad.

 

Wow 3 hours, does that include swapping valve springs?

 

The second time you do it, it's a lot easier and quicker. Then the third time you put a blind fold on just to make it more challenging.

 

I will PM you when I'm ready to do mine. I'll probably rent the equipment from you just to save some headaches.

 

tims valvespring tool works great look for it in the tools and fab section.....i used 5/16 dowels from wal mart craft section fust lube em up and slide them in....we done mine in 2 evenings but we also done rod bolts as well....having a friend to help is handy

 

If you're willing to spend $100.00 to save a lot of time and work, especially if you do multiple cam and spring swaps you should buy the Vinci/Crane tool. It does both springs on each cylinder at the same time. I also have the Tim's tool($30 -Does one spring at a time) as well as about 5 other spring tools. Nothing wrong with the Tim's tool if you only plan on a few spring changes, but if you do this job enough times the Vinci/Crane tool pays for itself. I would recommend against the pivoting type sping compressor tools that use leverage to compress the spring especially if you have limited experience doing this job. There have been numerous horror stories on this site of people using the lever type spring compressor tools breaking the bolt off in the cylinder head. Once that happens they aren't worried about getting the springs out anymore. All they want to know at that point is how to get a broken steel bolt out of an aluminum head. Avoid that problem by avoiding the lever type tool if you don't turn a lot of wrenches.
When it comes to pulling the cam I have both the JPR tool and the 5/16" steel rods(I wouldn't use threaded rod. Get unthreaded solid rods.) The JPR tool works on some engines, but not on others. For $3.50 each you can't beat the steel rods.